Note: If your site is not integrated with your HR directory, you should leave the "Manual Entry" option enabled.
In the event that your site is integrated with your campus’ HR directory, your applicants normally have two options for requesting electronic recommendations:
1) The applicant can use the search feature to search for recommenders from within your institution. When an applicant creates a recommendation request using Option 1 (the Directory Lookup), the user account created for that recommender is internal. The email sent to the faculty member will instruct the recommender to use your institution's login credentials.
2) The applicant could request a recommendation from anyone, either from within or outside your institution. When an applicant creates a recommendation request using Option 2 (the Manual Entry), the user account created for that recommender is external. The applicant can manually enter the name and email of the person of their choosing. The email sent to the faculty member will include a temporary password for the person to use when logging into your site.
If you wish to prevent your applicants from requesting recommendations from people outside your institution, you can disable the external recommender option. To do this, go to System Settings > System Features > Administrative tab. Uncheck the box next to "Enable Manual Entry (external users)". Then click 'Update "Update" to save your changes.
This action is only one way to prevent your faculty from potentially getting created twice in the system (once as internal and once as external). However, this action does prevent the ability for applicants to request electronic recommendations from people outside your institution.